The amount and diversity of media such as movies and other videos available to the general public has grown, and with it the need to discuss such media content with users that have similar interests. Existing forums for such discussions include various social networking sites or services that allow users to post comments with reference to time codes or to posted or linked video snippets as they view a video. To identify videos of interest users might view the comments and then the referenced video. Similarly a user may turn to the comments after watching a video that the user liked or disliked with other users. Either way the options of the current process are cumbersome: the user has to keep one or more time code in mind while watching, or after watching has to go back and find the correct point in time corresponding to the time code of the referenced clip, or has to stop watching the main video and refer to a link or to a posted excerpt of the video.
Another drawback of present options is related to the timing of comment consumption, especially if comments are provided without spoiler alerts. Reading comments before watching a corresponding video (e.g. to identify one of particular interest) can spoil its enjoyment by prematurely revealing critical information, e.g. a major twist in the storyline such as the death or survival of a main character, how a mystery resolves, or similar. The only current option to securely avoid this problem is to postpone reading of all comments until after the video has been watched to its end, in which case comments cannot safely be used to identify videos of interest beforehand. Similarly, rather than allowing a user to be sociable and discuss a video and reactions to it with fellow users during the experience in real time, the user has to wait to avoid exposure to “spoiler” comments, and to avoid making such comments.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a system and method that allows users to more freely share their comments and experience with others while ensuring that the viewing experience is not significantly altered by prematurely revealing relevant information. Additionally, there is a need for a system and method that allow a comment sharing experience that is less cumbersome and more immediate. Further there is a need for an enriched interactive experience viewing a media stream where users can enjoy access to multiple user comments presented concurrently with the media stream. These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be explained and will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art through the summary of the invention that follows.